Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout08/16/2005, PH 6 - FARE POLICY UPDATE FOR SAN LUIS OBISPO TRANSIT council 8- 6-05 acEnba aEpoizt CITY O F SAN LUIS O B ISPO FROM: Jay D..Walter,Director of Public Works Prepared by: Austin O'Dell, Transit Manager SUBJECT: FARE POLICY UPDATE FOR SAN LUIS OBISPO TRANSIT MTC RECOMMENDATION Approve the Fare Policy Update for San Luis Obispo Transit. CAO RECOMMENDATION 1. Adopt Resolution approving the Fare Policy Update for San Luis Obispo Transit as recommended by the Mass Transportation Committee. 2. Appropriate an additional $4,500 from the unappropriated Transit Fund Balance to program electronic farebox equipment. DISCUSSION Background The Fare Policy is a single approved document establishing fares and all fare media on San Luis Obispo Transit. There have been a number of ancillary changes to the fare structure, fare media used on the system, and fare discount eligibility for riders. Some fare media(passes,coupons,ticket books, etc.) have been prone to abuse by counterfeiting and fraud. SLO Transit is updating its media to prevent this from occurring. The proposed update to the fare policy reflects the current fares, establishes additional pass types and corresponding rates to solicit new riders and outlines policies for fare acceptance by our transit system. Fare Policy Synopsis—What's New On July 13, 2005, the Mass Transportation Committee (MTC) reviewed and approved a recommendation that Council adopt the draft Fare Policy Update. The majority of current fares and passes remain the same. The most notable change in the fare system is the creation of a new pass system (achievable because of our electronic farebox equipment) that will allow greater flexibility and choice to riders in purchasing and using passes on.the SIA Transit System. The new system provides 1-day, 3-day, 5-day and 7-day passes for the public, each of which result in a cost savings depending on individual rider needs.Pricing for the proposed system was developed using the current cost.of a monthly pass as a basis. Using this as the benchmark the following rate structure is proposed:and discussed more fully below: San Luis Obispo Transit Fare Policy Update _ __ _ Page 2 1-Day Pass 3-Day Pass 5-Day Pass 7-Day Pass 31-Day Student _ Pass $3.00 $5.00 $7.00 $10.00 $20.00 1. 1-Day Pass. The 1-Day Pass provides unlimited rides for one day and is available to any passenger. The cost of the pass is three dollars ($3.00). The primary target for this pass is the short-term or occasional rider who would like unlimited rides for a single day and not have to use cash. The pass will be sold on the buses. Staff will also pursue establishing outlets at motels and hotels in the City. 2.. 3-Day Pass. The 3-Day Pass provides unlimited rides for three days from first use and is available to any passenger for use on.the trolley and city buses. The trolley has been included because the intent of the pass is to target visitors on the weekend. By allowing the pass on the trolley we may increase trolley farebox as well as ridership. The cost of the pass is five dollars ($5.00). The primary target for this pass is "hotel row"in addition to the short-term leisure and business visitor who desires to use the bus service between hotel, downtown, and other destinations in the City. 3. 5-Day Pass. The 5-Day Pass provides unlimited.rides for five days from first use and is available to any passenger. The cost of the pass is seven dollars ($7.00). The primary target for this pass is the short-term leisure and business visitor who desires to use the bus service between hotel, downtown, and other destinations in the City and may be in the City for a business work week. 4. 7-Day Pass. The 7-Day Pass provides unlimited rides for seven days from date of first use and is available to any passenger. The cost of the pass is ten dollars ($10.00). The primary target for this pass, is the rider who uses the bus system but will not buy a monthly pass because he/she rides less than three weeks during,any one month. 5. 31-Day Student Pass. The 31-Day Student Pass provides unlimited rides for 31 days from date of first use, and is available to students from K-12 with valid identification. The cost of the pass is twenty dollars ($20.00). This pass does not compete with the 31- Day Regular pass since the new pass is available only to students. Valid identification which includes a driver's license (16-18 years of age) or valid school photo/non-photo. identification is required at the time of purchase. While it may seem that the number of pass alternatives is too great, MTC believes and staff concurs, that the greater flexibility in pass types will lead to more ridership and transit use by occasional users who currently do not ride the system. The electronic farebox equipment reduces the work effort-needed to process the multiple pass types so impact to fare processing.is expected to be minimal. Finally, one small change to both the general rider and the senior/disabled monthly pass is being recommended. These passes will now be issued as thirty one (31) day passes instead of"monthly" � -a i San Luis Obispo Transit Fare Policy Update Page 3 passes. They will start on the first day of pass use and continue for the next thirty one days. To current monthly pass users this conversion will be seamless since most, if not all, buy their passes near the first day of the month. However, for new monthly pass buyers there will be a greater incentive to purchase this pass since it will no longer matter if the purchasetakes place on the first, the middle, or last day of the month. A detailed description of these new passes, as well and the other current fare costs and programs are in the attached resolution (Attachment 1). Performance Standards for the New Passes Because the affect on existing farebox recovery ratios is difficult to determine for each of these new passes, staff will evaluate each pass after one year of implementation to determine the impacts or benefit on the farebox. If the systemwide farebox ratio falls below the mandated ratio of twenty percent (20%) staff may need to discontinue the pass or increase the pass costs. In establishing the recommended pass costs, staff conducted a variety of scenario assessments to forecast impacts on system farebox by the proposed system. Depending on the actual.use of the passes, the farebox ratio will most likely be improved if we see morepew transit riders. There is also the possibility that farebox could be negatively affected by the new pass system. If most of our current cash paying riders convert to the individual pass system and we see no new riders, there may be a decline in total farebox. This is unlikely since many individuals choose to pay a cash fare and do not ride the system more than once or twice a day..Staff will need to monitor the new system closely and if necessary, bring recommendations back to Council for pass cost adjustments to meet the recovery ratio.requirements. FISCAL IMPACT This item has no impact to the General Fund. The electronic farebox equipment will need to be programmed to accept the new pass media, and the system vendor will need to produce the pass media for each pass type. This cost is estimated at $1,500 for each pass type for a total of $10,500. However, in developing the FY 2005-06 budget, staff anticipated that only four of the proposed seven passes (two revised passes and five new passes) would,be implemented (total budget of $6,000). MTC recommended that all five new passes be implemented, along with the two revised passes, in FY 2006 if possible, which requires an additional allocation of$4,500 to implement. There is sufficient funding in the unappropriated Transit Fund balance to fund the additional $4,500. Therefore it is recommended that Council appropriate $4,500 from the unappropriated Transit Fund Balance for use in FY 2005-06 to complete full implementation of the project. CONCURRENCES The Mass Transportation Committee concurs with the CAO Recommendation. 6-3 San Luis Obispo Transit Fare Policy Update Paqe 4. ALTERNATIVES Alternative 1. Council may decide not to approve all or some of the new passes recommended by the MTC: The consequence to this alternative is than SanLuis Obispo Transit may lose potential bus pass revenue associated with the new passes, especially the student pass. Alternative 2. Council may decide not to implement all five new passes in FY 2005706. There is no significant fiscal downside to this alternative.. However, implementing the passes over a number of years could cause confusion for transitriders and may not yield maximum positive results of the proposed new pass system. ATTACHMENTS 1. Resolution Adopting the Fare Policy for San Luis Obispo Transit with.MTC's Recommendation. 2. MTC Minutes for the July 13, 2005 meeting. 1:\-Council Agenda Reports\2005 agenda reports\Transportation and Development Review(Bochum)\Transit(O'Dell)\CAR Fare Policy Update- PRODUCTIONA*. �-y ATTACHMENT 1 RESOLUTION NO. (2005 Series) RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY.OF SAN LUIS OBISPO APPROVING THE FARE STRUCTURE FOR SAN LUIS OBISPO TRANSIT WHEREAS, the current fare policy for San Luis Obispo Transit was approved by City Council on November 19, 1996; and WHEREAS, the current Fare Policy does not include all valid fare media accepted on San Luis Obispo Transit; and WHEREAS, cash and.prepaid fares on SLO Transit changed on January 4, 2004 in accordance to the Council adopted Short Range Transit Plan; and WHEREAS, staff presented the Fare Policy Update to the Mass Transportation Committee on July 13,2005; and WHEREAS, the Mass Transportation Committee recommended approval of the new fare policy including new: a) 1-Day Pass, b) 3-Day Pass; c) 5-Day Pass; d) 7-Day Pass, and e) 31-Day Student Pass; and WHEREAS, the City Council determines that an approved fare policy and rate structure is in the best interests of the City, SLO Transit riders and the general publics and NOW,THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of San Luis Obispo to the following fare structure on San Luis Obispo Transit in accordanceto Exhibit A. Upon motion of , seconded by and on the following roll call vote: AYES: NOES: ABSENT- The foregoing resolution was adopted this day of , 2005. ATTACHMENT 1 ATTEST: City Clerk, Audrey Hooper Mayor, Dave Romero APPROVE TO FORM: aoey, Jonathan Lowell ATTACHMENT 1 EXHBIT A 1. REGULAR CASH FARE a. Fare is$1.00 per boarding. b. Available to any passenger 2. SENIOR/DISABLED CASH FARE a. Fare is $0.50 per boarding. b. Available to passengers who are 62 years of age or more Requires valid,photo identification at the time of boarding c.. Available to persons with disabilities with valid identification 3. TROLLEY CASH FARE a. Fare is $0.25 per boarding b. Available to any passenger c. Passes,transfers, and Cal Poly Student pass not accepted, with the exception of the 3-Day Visitor Pass. d. 3-Day Visitor's Pass is accepted on the trolley. 4. REGULAR 31 DAY PASS AND MONTHLY PASS a. Fare is $30.00 for unlimited rides b. Valid for 31 Days or the month purchased.. c. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo d. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit e:. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route,but not accepted on the Downtown Trolley f. Regular 31-Day Passes can be purchased any time and are valid for 31 days from the first day of use. g. Regular Monthly Pass should be purchased prior to_ month for use, and are valid only for the month purchased. 5. SENIOR/DISABLED 31 DAY AND MONTHLY PASS a. Fare is $10.00 for unlimited rides.. b. Valid for 31 days or the month purchased. c. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo d. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit e. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route,but not accepted on the Downtown Trolley f. Available to passengers who are 62 years of age or more (Requires valid photo identification at the time of purchase) g. Available to persons with disabilities with valid identification h. Senior/Disabled 31 Day Passes can be purchased any time and are valid for 31 days from the first day of use. i. Senior/Disabled Monthly Passes should be purchased prior to month for use, and are valid only for the month purchased: 6. PROMOTIONAL SCRIPT a. Book of 20 tickets is $20.00. ATTACHMENT 1 EXHBIT A b. One ticket is good for one ride. c. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit d. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route, but not accepted on the Downtown Trolley e. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo L Available to any passenger 7. I-DAY PASS a. Fare is $3.00 for unlimited rides for.ldays. b. Valid for 1 day from validation date or from first day of use c. Issued.by City of San Luis.Obispo d. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit e. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route, but not accepted on the Downtown Trolley f. Available to any passenger g, At the latest, implement in FY 2006-07 8. 3-DAY PASS a. Fare is $5.00 for unlimited rides for Iday b. Valid for 3 days from validation date or from first day of use c. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo d. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit e. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route and the Downtown Trolley f. Available to any passenger 9. 5-DAY VISITOR'S PASS A. Fare is$7.00 for unlimited rides during 5 days b. Valid for 5 days from validation date or from first day of use c. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo d. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit e. Valid on any SLO Transit,bus route, but not accepted on the Downtown Trolley Available to any passenger f. At the latest, implement in FY 2006-07 10. 7-DAY VISITOR'S PASS a. Fare is $10.00 for unlimited rides during 7 days. b. Valid for 7 days from validation date or from first day of use C. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo d. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit e. Valid on any SLO Transit bus "route, but not accepted on the Downtown Trolley f. Available to any passenger g. At the latest, implement in FY 2006-07 11. 31-DAY STUDENT PASS a. Fare is $20.00 for unlimited rides for 31 days. b. Valid for 31 days from validation date or from first day of use c. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit LQ _ o ATTACHMENT 1 EXHBIT A d. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route, but not accepted on the Downtown Trolley e. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo f. Available to students from Kindergarten to 12th Grade with valid identification. g. Valid identification would include driver's license proving to be the age 18 or younger or valid school photo/non-photo identification. 12. SL_ O TRANSIT TRANSFERS a. Fee is $0.00 (FREE). b. SLO Transit passenger must request a transfer when boarding the bus. c. Issued by SLO Transit driver d. Available to any SLO Transit passenger e. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route,except on the Downtown Trolley 13. RT_ A REGIONAL TRANSFERS_ a. Fee is $0.75 b. Issued by RTA bus driver_ c. Accepted from any RTA bus rider d. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route, except on the Downtown Trolley 14. UNIVERSAL PASSES a. Must use the appropriate number coupons to equal appropriate cash fare (i.e. regular or Senior/Disabled)on SLO Transit. b. Accepted on any bus, dial-a-ride, and paratransit systems in San Luis Obispo County c. Accepted on Downtown Trolley d. Issued by San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority e. Available to any passenger and general public 15. RT_A_ MONTHLY REGIONAL PASSES a. Valid for month purchased.. b. Issued by San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority c. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit, San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority, and SCAT 16. CAL POLY PHOTO ID a. Fare is prepaid by Cal Poly State University b, Eligible to Cal Poly students, staff, faulty with valid Cal Poly photo identification. c. Valid per to the terms of the current Cal Poly Fare Subsidy Agreement d. Issued by Cal Poly e. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit bus routes, except on Downtown Trolley 17. GOLD PASS a. Fare is $0.00 (FREE). Parldng Fund reimburses usage. b. Eligible to downtown employees, except Cal Poly students c. Must be validated monthly with recent payroll stub and photo ID d. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo Ut, — ATTACHMENT 1 EXHBIT A e. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit f. Valid on any SLO Transit bus route, except on the Downtown Trolley 18. HOME DEPOT (and others as approved) Flash Pass a. Fare is $0.00. The Air Pollutim Control District reimburses usage. b. Eligible to employees at the San,Luis Obispo Home Depot c. Issued by City of San Luis Obispo d. Valid only on San Luis Obispo Transit bus routes, except on the Downtown Trolley. 19. SUMMER YOUTH PASS a. Valid from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend. b. Unlimited rides during effective period. c. Valid on participating transit operators and services. d. Issued by San Luis Obispo Transit Authority. 20. TRANSIT PROGRAM a.. No fare for City Transit Program personnel conducting City business. b. City Transit Program personnel are required to pay appropriate fare for non-city related trips (i.e. commute trips,personal trips), Lp—/0 ATTACHMENT 2 DRAFT CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO MASS TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE 990 PALM ST. WEDNESDAY,JULY 13,2005 CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Jean Knox called the meeting to.order at 2:35 p.m. ROLL CALL Present: Jean Know (Chair),D. Gregg Doyle, Denise Martinez, Susan Rains (Vice Chair), and Bob Johnson, Alternates: Kathy Howard(voting), Angela Strohn (voting) Absent: Jose Lemus,Dustin Robinson ANNOUNCEMENTS There were none. PUBLIC COMMENTS Tim Bochum introduced Jay Walter, new director of Public Works. There were no other public comments.. A. CONSENT ITEMS A-1 Approval of Minutes of May 11, 2005 A-2 Assign Bus Interior& Graphics to Marketing Ad Hoc Committee Motion made by Mr.Doyle, seconded by Mr. Johnson, to approve the consent items carried unanimously. B. DISCUSSION ITEMS BL Adjourn Meeting at 3:35 pari:for Bus yard Site Visit Motion made by Mr.Johnson, seconded by Mr. Doyle, to adjourn the meeting at 3:35 p.m. and to reconvene at the Bus Yard carred unanimously. B-2 Clarification on MTC Recommendation on the Service Proposals Mr:Bochum discussed the areas of concerns regarding communication breakdowns between departments re the MTC recommendations for service refinement analysis in 2005. He outlined discrepancies between.MTC recommendations and staff recommendations pertaining to the ATTACHMENT 2 service refinements presented and agreed that better, clearer communication between staff and MTC members would be achieved. He also discussed the need for all members to understand the exact language and intent of recommendations and directions to staff so there is a consensus of direction. He asked for further discussion on the recommendations to be part of the fall service program to be implemented January 1, 2006, since the July 1,2005 deadline had passed. The Committee clarified that their intention behind the motion was to have staff review and study the motion directives and come back to the MTC with recommendations on the content of that motion for possible implementation in January, 2006. Mr. Doyle determined with staff that the next meeting agenda packet would contain recommendations analysis for the Committee to further act upon. Ms. Knox stated she was particularly concerned with the"leave behinds" on certain routes. Mr:. Bochum pointed out that those leave-behinds were hard to track, as they only usually occurred at peak times on certain days depending on certain times of the school schedule. Ken Blankman clarified that there was standing room on the Foothill routes and not a lot of stranding, while Route 5 on Mill often seemed to strand riders, in large part because studentswill park close to campus and then take the bus to ride up to campus. There was general Committee discussion and clarification on alterations to routes and Committee intentions and to have staff bring analysis back to thenext meeting. Mr. Bochum asked for prioritizing of service changes so he might bring items back to the September MTC meeting. Mr. Johnson noted that he did not want staff to be pressured in analysis of issues by being tied to a particular timeframe (e.g. January 1, 2006). Mr. Bochum summarized the Council-approved recommendation that could be studied and implemented by January 1, 2006. Motion made by Mr. Doyle moved, seconded by Ms. Rains, to have defer this matter to an ad hoc committee to work closely with staff, and report to the Committee at the next regular meeting in September carried unanimously. Motion made by Mr. Johnson, seconded by Ms. Rains, for the ad hoc committee comprise of Ms. Martinez, Ms. Knox, and Mr. Doyle carried unanimously. B-3 Recommendation on the Fare Policy Update Mr. Bochum discussed the fare policy item recommendation regarding multi-day passes. He outlined modifications to now include 1-day passes for$3; 7-day passes for$10; 31-day student passes for$20. He noted these would deliver slightly higher far box than present monthly passes. LO-ra ATTACHMENT 2 He reported that the,just-approved budget did not include increases of fare-programming coststo implement these newly formed passes and that monies might only cover two passes, in which case he recommended the priority be for the 1-day;and 31-day student pass. Motion made by Mr. Johnson;seconded by W.Doyle, to recommend: a) 1=Day Pass for$3.00; b) 3-Day Pass for$5.00; c) 5-Day Pass for$'7.00;-d) 7-Day Pass for$10.00; e) 31-Day Student Pass for$20.00; e)to implement the 1-Day Pass and 31-Day Student Pass first and implement the remaining new passes the new fiscal year-;and f) to implement a performance standard if the systemwide farebox ratio falls below 20010 as stated in the staff report. The motion carried unanimously. The Committee believed the new passes should include Trolley service and staff agreed to review the ramifications of including the Trolley on those passes. B-4 Explanation of Committee Member Field Reports Ms. Knox discussed her idea of having each member choose a.route to ride and bring back a. "field report"evaluation of that experience. The Committee agreed to get back to Ms. Knox with their route choices for evaluation. The meeting adjourned at 3:40 p.m. to reconvene at the Bus Yard for a site visit by the Committee. The next regular meeting is scheduled for September 14, 2005., Respectfully submitted,. Lisa Woske Recorder Secretary to—(3